John Shepherd
| image = | birth name = John William Shepherd | known aliases = | gender = | mediums = Film | roles = | date of birth = November 18th, 1960 | place of birth = Glen Ellyn, Illinois | date of death = | place of death = | notable works = Friday the 13th | first = Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (1985) }} John William Shepherd is an American film and television actor. He was born in Glen Ellyn, Illinois on November 18th, 1960. John has distinguished himself in horror cinema for his role of mentally disturbed survivor Tommy Jarvis in the 1985 slasher film Friday the 13th: A New Beginning. Not straying too far from his Friday roots, he also played a police constable in the "The Baron's Bride" episode of the horror series Friday the 13th: The Series. In 2000, John played Mister Czernik in the supernatural thriller Bless the Child. Body of work Film Television Notes & Trivia * John Shepherd is the second of three actors to play the role of Tommy Jarvis in the Friday the 13th film series. The first was Corey Feldman who played him in Friday the 13th Part IV: The Final Chapter and in the beginning of Friday the 13th: A New Beginning and Return of the Living Dead star Thom Matthews, who played him in Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives. * The original intent of Friday the 13th: A New Beginning director Danny Steinmann was that Tommy Jarvis would inherit the psychotic mantle (and hockey mask) of late serial killer Jason Voorhees and become the new antagonist for the series going forward. Viewers however, disliked the notion of a Friday the 13th movie without Jason so any future plans to continue the franchise with Tommy as the killer were scrapped. Tommy did make one more appearance however in the film's sequel, Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, but he was played by another actor. * John Shepherd was offered to reprise the role of Tommy Jarvis for Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, but turned it down. The role eventually went to Thom Matthews. IMDB; John Shepherd; Biography * John Shepherd shares a birthday with actor Ian McCulloch (b. 1939), who appeared in Zombi 2, fellow Friday the 13th alum Peter Brouwer (b. 1945), who played Steve Christy in the first Friday the 13th, and actress Elizabeth Anne Allen (b. 1970), who played witch Amy Madison on episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. * The character of John Shepard - father of telekinetic Tina Shepard from Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood is named after John Shepherd. * John Shepherd is the founder and president of Mpower Pictures, an independent production company. Mpower Pictures has produced several award-winning features for theatrical distribution including Bella, The Stoning of Soraya M., and Snowmen. The Veritas Forum; Veritas.org External Links * * * John Shepherd at Wikipedia * * * References ---- Category:1960 births Category:Friday the 13th: The Series/Crew members